Mop wringer attachment for a bucket

ABSTRACT

A bucket has a mop wringer attachment comprising fixed and movable rollers in a guide frame located in the bucket mouth. An S-shaped linkage and a yoke connects the movable roller to an operating pedal. A stabilising foot extends from the bucket wall below the pedal.

1% 1 tet 1 1 [111 3,921,247 Cook Nov. 25, 1975 [54] MOP WRINGER ATTACHMENT FOR A 581,698 5/1897 Dixon 15/262 BUCKET 13132??? 3113?? $1 "$1 121525 a or e a [75] Inventor: Leslie George Cook, Wimbledon, y

London, England FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 635,509 3/1962 Italy 15/262 [73] 4551811661 Y Jane Llmlted, 660,499 11/1951 United Kingdomm. 15/262 wlmbledon, London, England 129,788 11 1946 Australia 15/262 1,576,812 8/1969 France 15/262 [22] 1974 I 153,644 10/1953 Australia 15/262 [21] Appl. No.: 445,305

Primary Examiner-Daniel Blum Attorney, Agent, or FirmKemon, Palmer & [30] Forelgn Appllcatlon Prlonty Data Estabrook Man 2, 1973 United Kingdom 10356/73 52 US. c1. 15/262 [57] ABS TRACT 51 1111.01 A47L 13/60 A bucket has a mop wrmger attachment compflsmg 5 Field of Search 5/2 2 2; 24 257 fixed and movable rollers in a. guide frame located in the bucket mouth. An S-shaped l1nkage and a yoke [56] References Cited connects the movable roller to an operating pedal. A UNITED STATES PATENTS stabilising foot extends from the bucket wall below the edal. 177,716 5/1876 Hoag 15/262 UX p 580,249 4/1897 Burnham 15/262 1 Claim, 2 Drawing Figures US. Patent Nov. 25, 1975 Sheet20f2 3,921,247

MOP WRINGER ATTACHMENT FOR A BUCKET The present invention relates to a bucket having an attachment whereby the operator by the depression of a foot pedal, can wring out liquid from a mop head.

According to the present invention an attachment for incorporation into the upper part of a bucket comprises a fixed element and movable element. The mop head can be clamped against the fixed element by the movable element for wringing. The movable element is connected by an appropriate linkage to a pedal pivoted to a fulcrum on the lower part of the peripheral wall of the bucket. The present invention provides two major improvements either individually or in combination:

1. A stabilising foot attached to the wall of the bucket is positioned below the pedal. This ensures stability of the bucket when the pedal is depressed.

2. The pedal is carried by the extremity of one outer arm of a doubly-cranked generally S shaped lever. The lever is fulcrummed about a pivot point on the bucket wall on the lower bend of the S-shape, the upper outer arm of the S-shape extending over the rim of the bucket. This upper arm is pivotally connected to a reciprocable structure carrying a wringing element, the wringing element moving on guides within the upper part of the bucket.

A particular embodiment of this invention will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side-view, partly in section of a bucket incorporating a wringer attachment in accordance with the particular embodiment having certain parts shown alternatively in dot and pick lines to illustrate operation; and

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the bucket and wringer attachment of FIG. 1.

The device illustrated in the drawing comprises a cylindrical bucket 1 and adjacent the bucket rim, a guide frame 2 for a mop head wringer. The frame 2 consists of two horizontally disposed vertically aligned opposedelements, each having a strip portion 3 defining in use a chord of the bucket cylinder and two edge portions 4 tangentially disposed to the inner surface of the bucket wall. Each portion 4 is received in a slot 5 formed by a flange 6 formed integrally with the inner surface of the bucket wall and is fixed in the slot to the wall by a rivet 7. I

An elongate slot 8 extends along each strip portion 3 such slot providing a guideway for an axle 9 of a reciprocable wringing roller 10. One end part of the slot 8 is enlarged into a circular hole 11 and is isolated from the remainder of the slot by a stop 12. The end parts of an axle 13 carrying a roller hereinafter referred to as a fixed roller, extending between the strip portions 3, are located in the said holes; the fixed roller 14 is thus free to rotate but not to slide along the slot 8. The wringing roller is free for rotation and sliding.

Dependent end parts 15 of a horizontally disposed yoke 16 are connected, one to each end part of the axle 9 0f the wringing roller 10. The yoke 16 extends over the frame 2 and the fixed roller 14, the two arms thereof meeting and being joined by a pivot pin 17 positioned in the non-operative condition shown in FIG. 2

over the bucket rim at'a point midway between the two frame elements 3. The free end parts of a generally U- shaped carrying handle 19 are pivotally connected to opposed positions on the yoke arms.

A pedal-operated actuating lever 20 is doubly cranked and of generally S-shape, (see FIG. 1) the free end parts 21 and 22 of the S-shape being short. The upper free end part 21 is pivotally connected to the yoke pivot pin 17 above the: bucket rim. The lower bend of the S-shape is pivotally connected to a pin 24 extending between a parallel pair of radially outwardly extending ribs 25 on the bucket wall under the yoke pivot pin and extending the height of the bucket. The lower free end part 22 is extended as a square frame 26 constituting a foot pedal. A coil spring 27 extends from a position high on the bucket adjacent and to one side of the ribs 25 to the front of the pedal frame 26. If desired, in addition, a similar coil spring can be positioned at the other side of the ribs 25. Depression of the pedal 26 against the spring bias in the direction of the arrow causes the upper part of the lever 26 to pivot in a clockwise sense about the pivot point 24 thereby moving the yoke 16 and the sliding roller 10 towards the fixed roller to adopt the position shown in dot and pick lines in FIG. 1. A mop inserted between the rollers 10 and 14 can thus be squeezed by depressing the pedal frame 26.

A generally rectangular integrally formed supporting foot 28 extends from the base of the bucket 1 below the pedal. The foot 28 is integral with the lower parts of the ribs 25. The base of the bucket l is supported off the ground by caster wheels 29. one of which is under the foot.

The undersurface of the foot bears through castor 29 against the ground when the pedal 26 is depressed thereby stabilising the bucket; no other stabilising means is required.

The bucket, ribs 25 and foot 28 are conveniently moulded integrally from a synthetic resin such as a polypropylene resin.

Iclaim: I

1. A bucket incorporating a mop wringer attachment, such attachment comprising parallel guide rails extending across the upper part of the bucket interior, an elongate movable wringing element extending between the rails and movable along the rails, a fixed wringing element extending between the rails, a doubly cranked generally S-shaped lever incorporating an operating pedal at one end, a horizontally-disposed pivot pin extending through the bend of the S-shaped lever adjacent the end incorporating the pedal and fixed structure on the lower part of the bucket wall, a linkage between the upper end of the lever and the movable wringing element whereby depression of the pedal causes the movable wringing element to move in the wringing direction towards the fixed wringing element. spring means opposing depression of the pedal. a stabilising foot extending radially outwardly from the bucket wall and positioned under the pedal both in the depressed and in the raised condition of the latter, and caster wheels, on the underside of the bucket, one of 

1. A bucket incorporating a mop wringer attachment, such attachment comprising parallel guide rails extending across the upper part of the bucket interior, an elongate movable wringing element extending between the rails and movable along the rails, a fixed wringing element extending between the rails, a doubly cranked generally S-shaped lever incorporating an operating pedal at one end, a horizontally-disposed pivot pin extending through the bend of the S-shaped lever adjacent the end incorporating the pedal and fixed structure on the lower part of the bucket wall, a linkage between the upper end of the lever and the movable wringing element whereby depression of the pedal causes the movable wringing element to move in the wringing direction towards the fixed wringing element, spring means opposing depression of the pedal, a stabilising foot extending radially outwardly from the bucket wall and positioned under the pedal both in the depressed and in the raised condition of the latter, and caster wheels, on the underside of the bucket, one of which is under the foot. 